Excavator GUI by cTnko - Miner Interface for beginners and advanced users [0.9]

[cTnko]

Hi everyone, since my Excavator GUI gained enough traction between users, i am creating its own official thread.

Excavator by NiceHash download link - https://github.com/nicehash/excavator/releases
Excavator GUI by cTnko download link - https://github.com/cTn-dev/Excavator-GUI/releases

Excavator GUI was built for Excavator GPU miner by NiceHash to allow easier configuration and leverage the advanced functionality this miner offers.

Screenshots



Youtube Videos
Introduction to mining with Excavator GUI - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMeigyZYwPw
Backup Pools and Overclocking Profiles - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2eh2UMeAjU
Mining Ethereum on suprnova.cc - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kV89l1M9y7U

Why should i use Excavator with GUI instead of just the console version?
- You don't have to use command file at all, you don't have to restart the miner for the new settings to take effect.
- Flexibility, you are able to add/remove jobs, devices & workers on the fly.
- Easy read-out of hashrate and shares for every worker and every job
- GPU monitoring for temperature, gpu and mcu usage, TDP % and Watt usage
- Backup pools support (if primary pool goes down, GUI can automatically switch to a backup pool/s)
- You can setup Overclock for your hardware on the fly
- You can define Overclocking Profiles that get applied when specific job is started
- Adding GPU to a job will automatically spawn recommended amount of workers for best utilization (great for beginners)
- Much more, check the https://github.com/cTn-dev/Excavator-GUI for more info.

Limitations
daggerhashimoto is currently only supported on nicehash and suprnova (this is Excavator limitation, not GUI limitation)
Excavator GUI doesn't work on Windows 10 Education (reason currently unknown)

Disclaimer
Excavator GUI contains 1% developer fee
The developer fee only gets applied after extensive period of time, any short time mining sessions won't be affected by this fee at all.
There will be a clear visual indication in the GUI when the 1% fee will be mined.
If you don't agree with this, please don't use it!

[cTnko]

Changelog

Code:

29.07.2017 @ 0.9
- Added lyra2rev2 algorithm support for nvidia cards
- Updated NWJS to version 0.24.0

24.07.2017 @ 0.8
- Added instability monitoring/protection related to Overclocking
- Added "Reset Statistics" for a worker button (advanced feature)
- Backup Pools functionality is now only visible when advanced settings are enabled
- Minor style changes

13.07.2017 @ 0.7
- Added "Display Advanced Settings" checkbox in settings area (enabling various advanced features)
- Excavator Local IP address is now configurable (advanced feature)
- Excavator Authorization Token is now configurable (advanced feature)
- Added Configuration Backup / Restore functionality (advanced feature)
- Updated NW.js to version 0.23.6
- Bugfix (Unsupported Overclocking options are no longer visible on AMD cards)

09.07.2017 @ 0.6
- Possible Bugfix/Workaround for excessive daggerhashimoto share rejects

09.07.2017 @ 0.5
- AMD Support enabled by default (Excavator won't communicate if there are no supported devices detected)
- AMD Support can now only be disabled when an NVIDIA GPU is detected in the system
- Fix typo in Threshold

08.07.2017 @ 0.4
- Added Settings section
- Added "Start Excavator GUI on Windows Startup" functionality (disabled by default)
- Excavator console & file logging levels are now configurable in the GUI
- Excavator AMD support is now configurable in the GUI (disabled by default)
- Backup Pool threshold is now configurable (15-300 seconds)
- Job share counters will now reset only when necessary
- AMD Support disabled by default (Can be enabled in Settings section)
- Adjusted some input fields to allow more clearer setup for suprnova

06.07.2017 @ 0.3
- Added Backup Pools functionality (unlimited amount of backup pools for each job)
- Added Overclocking Profiles functionality (unlimited amount of profiles)
- Bugfixes & Small UI enhancements

03.07.2017 @ 0.2
- Added confirmation dialogs for job/pool/wallet removal
- Fix Overclocking fan speed always showing as auto
- Potential fix for worker UI blocks occasionally disappearing

02.07.2017 @ 0.1
- First public release

[zorvalth]

worker.reset button for tests might be helpful because the speed of dagger level slow because of the dag creation in the beginning. Also algo/worker params support will be nice.

[cTnko]

worker.reset button for tests might be helpful because the speed of dagger level slow because of the dag creation in the beginning. Also algo/worker params support will be nice.

Regarding the reset button, i am thinking of adding "advanced settings" checkbox in settings, that would enable button like this, since the UI is quickly becoming more and more complex, which i am not a big fan of.
I want it as simple as possible for the newbie miner, but also feature packed for all the experienced miners.

Regarding the worker parameters, are there any specific algos that you tend to tweak the parameters a lot? (I am trying to establish how critical this feature would be and which algos need to get the support first, as every algo usually take different type of parameters, it would take a while to properly implement all of them).

[cTnko]

I have pushed an small update out for AMD users, since i received reports where GUI wouldn't load due to "no supported device detected", this condition appears to block the API communication.
AMD Support is enabled by default.
The AMD Support enabled/disabled option will now only be visible for machines that have at least one NVIDIA GPU installed, this should prevent AMD users from locking them selves out.

I have also uploaded a short video explaining how to setup the GUI for mining on suprnova - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kV89l1M9y7U (since daggerhashimoto in excavator only supports nicehash and suprnova pools).

Please keep the bug reports and feature ideas coming!

Happy Mining

[cTnko]

Hi guys, i am currently investigating reports of excessive share rejects while running daggerhashimoto for several hours, have any of you experienced such behavior?
If yes, could you please enable Excavator File Logging (0 - Full Logging) in Settings section, let it mine and when the problem occurs again, shut down the GUI and send me the log file.

Thank you!

[Fat_Shady]

Hi!

I am new to this thing. I have successfully used your GUI. It is basically my first day today of mining. I have added my wallet ID as well already and everything is in order. Question is, I came from Nicehash miner and it automatically send me the money to my wallet. Is that the same case as this one? Will my earning automatically go to my wallet? I am a noob here. Thanks for reading and hopefully for responding.

[Romeo26222]

Very nice job here..
I have a question
when I choose to start the GUI with windows, will it run the job automatically or not?
because if it will not run the job it will be useless in case of power cut and pc restarts..
regards

[cTnko]

Hi!

I am new to this thing. I have successfully used your GUI. It is basically my first day today of mining. I have added my wallet ID as well already and everything is in order. Question is, I came from Nicehash miner and it automatically send me the money to my wallet. Is that the same case as this one? Will my earning automatically go to my wallet? I am a noob here. Thanks for reading and hopefully for responding.

Hi, the payout depends on the pool that you are using (its the pool that sends you the money not the mining app), i am guessing you are mining on nicehash pool? If yo set your bitcoin wallet in the app and started the job without any issues, everything should be in order (you can check the excavator console to see if you got authenticated correctly).

Once you reach the minimal payout threshold the pool should send money to your wallet automatically.

[cTnko]

Very nice job here..
I have a question
when I choose to start the GUI with windows, will it run the job automatically or not?
because if it will not run the job it will be useless in case of power cut and pc restarts..
regards

Hi, if the GUI was mining (had active job/s) it will automatically resume the jobs when the power cut or pc restart occurs.
You can test it by having at least one job running, close the app, it will close both the gui and excavator, then start the app again, it should automatically start any jobs that were active before.

In other words, don't worry about it, everything is being taken care of on the restart/autostart end :-)

[Romeo26222]

Very nice job here..
I have a question
when I choose to start the GUI with windows, will it run the job automatically or not?
because if it will not run the job it will be useless in case of power cut and pc restarts..
regards

Hi, if the GUI was mining (had active job/s) it will automatically resume the jobs when the power cut or pc restart occurs.
You can test it by having at least one job running, close the app, it will close both the gui and excavator, then start the app again, it should automatically start any jobs that were active before.

In other words, don't worry about it, everything is being taken care of on the restart/autostart end :-)

good, I already tried and it works
one other thing, I want to change the web api port from 127.0.0.1 to my local rig ip address so I can access it remotely from other pc, I can do this from the excavator bat file but from your GUI I can't find that option..

[cTnko]

Very nice job here..
I have a question
when I choose to start the GUI with windows, will it run the job automatically or not?
because if it will not run the job it will be useless in case of power cut and pc restarts..
regards

Hi, if the GUI was mining (had active job/s) it will automatically resume the jobs when the power cut or pc restart occurs.
You can test it by having at least one job running, close the app, it will close both the gui and excavator, then start the app again, it should automatically start any jobs that were active before.

In other words, don't worry about it, everything is being taken care of on the restart/autostart end :-)

good, I already tried and it works
one other thing, I want to change the web api port from 127.0.0.1 to my local rig ip address so I can access it remotely from other pc, I can do this from the excavator bat file but from your GUI I can't find that option..

You are correct (currently this isn't possible), because inserting the API address manually could create a miss-configuration (if the IP changed) that would render the GUI completely disabled.
However, i could try to implement this in a way where the GUI would fetch your local IP address and allow you to either use the 127.0.0.1 or the local IP.
Would you be ok with something like that ?

[Romeo26222]

Very nice job here..
I have a question
when I choose to start the GUI with windows, will it run the job automatically or not?
because if it will not run the job it will be useless in case of power cut and pc restarts..
regards

Hi, if the GUI was mining (had active job/s) it will automatically resume the jobs when the power cut or pc restart occurs.
You can test it by having at least one job running, close the app, it will close both the gui and excavator, then start the app again, it should automatically start any jobs that were active before.

In other words, don't worry about it, everything is being taken care of on the restart/autostart end :-)

good, I already tried and it works
one other thing, I want to change the web api port from 127.0.0.1 to my local rig ip address so I can access it remotely from other pc, I can do this from the excavator bat file but from your GUI I can't find that option..

You are correct (currently this isn't possible), because inserting the API address manually could create a miss-configuration (if the IP changed) that would render the GUI completely disabled.
However, i could try to implement this in a way where the GUI would fetch your local IP address and allow you to either use the 127.0.0.1 or the local IP.
Would you be ok with something like that ?

yes this will be great because this is the only issue making me not able to use your software..
one other thing,when the miner starts mining the 1% for you, does it mine with all the GPU and disconnects the mining to my pool or it just use some of the hashing power towards you and keep mining both ways..

[cTnko]

Very nice job here..
I have a question
when I choose to start the GUI with windows, will it run the job automatically or not?
because if it will not run the job it will be useless in case of power cut and pc restarts..
regards

Hi, if the GUI was mining (had active job/s) it will automatically resume the jobs when the power cut or pc restart occurs.
You can test it by having at least one job running, close the app, it will close both the gui and excavator, then start the app again, it should automatically start any jobs that were active before.

In other words, don't worry about it, everything is being taken care of on the restart/autostart end :-)

good, I already tried and it works
one other thing, I want to change the web api port from 127.0.0.1 to my local rig ip address so I can access it remotely from other pc, I can do this from the excavator bat file but from your GUI I can't find that option..

You are correct (currently this isn't possible), because inserting the API address manually could create a miss-configuration (if the IP changed) that would render the GUI completely disabled.
However, i could try to implement this in a way where the GUI would fetch your local IP address and allow you to either use the 127.0.0.1 or the local IP.
Would you be ok with something like that ?

yes this will be great because this is the only issue making me not able to use your software..
one other thing,when the miner starts mining the 1% for you, does it mine with all the GPU and disconnects the mining to my pool or it just use some of the hashing power towards you and keep mining both ways..

Ill try to look into the the local IP feature then, if it will be possible it will be most likely released with the import/export GUI configuration feature that people requested.

The 1% fee uses all GPUs that were mining, it disconnects from the mining pool for a little over a minute and when its done it connects back.
So the hashing values you see in the overview area are always displaying 100% of what the hardware can push out.

[cTnko]

@Romeo26222 regarding the local IP settings, when you use it (with just the regular Excavator) can you instantly access it from a second pc on the network, or does it require some tinkering in firewall, etc?

As i am testing it right now and i can't seem to access the second PC even though the IP and port is bound correctly (always times out).

[aGeoM]

Hi

First I want to tank you, for you work.

Now, some issues I found, in versinos 0.3,0.5 and 0.6, have to do with the hardware page, meaning the overclock, I have 2 AMD GPUs an RX560 and RX580, as soon as I start the GUI, it interferes with my fan settings, putting them on AUTO or something (e.q WattMan set fan 100% it overwrite fan speed but settings on WatMan still at 100%), any setting on your overclock page does not work. Any way to disable or have overclock working. I don't need the overclock function since I use Wattman, but would be nice.

How can I recover setting from a old version to the new one?

Thanks

[cTnko]

Hi

First I want to tank you, for you work.

Now, some issues I found, in versinos 0.3,0.5 and 0.6, have to do with the hardware page, meaning the overclock, I have 2 AMD GPUs an RX560 and RX580, as soon as I start the GUI, it interferes with my fan settings, putting them on AUTO or something (e.q WattMan set fan 100% it overwrite fan speed but settings on WatMan still at 100%), any setting on your overclock page does not work. Any way to disable or have overclock working. I don't need the overclock function since I use Wattman, but would be nice.

How can I recover setting from a old version to the new one?

Thanks

Hi, the fan speed bug is actually caused by excavator it self (i was told it will be fixed in v1.2.11 alpha, which most of AMD users are waiting for).
Regarding the overclock settings in hardware page, the UI shouldn't show the overclocking options when you are just using AMD cards (since Excavator doesn't support overclocking on AMD cards yet).

Would you be so kind to take a screenshot of the hardware section for me?

Regarding the settings recovery, i am currently working on an backup / restore functionality which should be released in the next couple of days.

[Romeo26222]

@Romeo26222 regarding the local IP settings, when you use it (with just the regular Excavator) can you instantly access it from a second pc on the network, or does it require some tinkering in firewall, etc?

As i am testing it right now and i can't seem to access the second PC even though the IP and port is bound correctly (always times out).

Yes I can access it directly from the network
and I made a port forward and no-ip address on my router so I can also access the API from the web also..
check here
http://romeo26222.hopto.org:42000/

[cTnko]

@Romeo26222 regarding the local IP settings, when you use it (with just the regular Excavator) can you instantly access it from a second pc on the network, or does it require some tinkering in firewall, etc?

As i am testing it right now and i can't seem to access the second PC even though the IP and port is bound correctly (always times out).

Yes I can access it directly from the network
and I made a port forward and no-ip address on my router so I can also access the API from the web also..
check here
http://romeo26222.hopto.org:42000/

That's a smart way of using it, i guess my antivirus/antimalware must be interfering somehow in my case, i will investigate further, thank you for the info!

This is how it will be adjusted in the next release :-)

[aGeoM]

Hi, the fan speed bug is actually caused by excavator it self (i was told it will be fixed in v1.2.11 alpha, which most of AMD users are waiting for).
Regarding the overclock settings in hardware page, the UI shouldn't show the overclocking options when you are just using AMD cards (since Excavator doesn't support overclocking on AMD cards yet).

Would you be so kind to take a screenshot of the hardware section for me?

Regarding the settings recovery, i am currently working on an backup / restore functionality which should be released in the next couple of days.

Thanks for the reply.

I can take a SS of the hardware page, it's the same as I saw in your youtube videos, CPU delta, Mem delta, TDP % and Fan. The problem ATM is I can't run your GUI without Excavator.exe or even a fake one , because it starts with your GUI and it messes with my fan control, the way to fix is DDU to clean drivers configuration and new driver install. Maybe (it's just an opinion) GUI should only start excavator when a job starts, anyway if it is important the SS I will stop mining and do what ever is needed to take it and post here.

I'm glad to see the configurations backup option will be available in the next release.

All the best...